Working with Words
Robert Oliphant, a lexicographer, is interested in using the current economic downturn as a means of encouraging high school freshmen to increase their word knowledge and ultimately have an edge when seeking a job. (A lexicographer, by the way, is one who analyzes the components underlying the words--the lexicon--of our language).
Encouraging students to use electronic dictionaries, he urges them to become conversant with the "high tech workplace American English vocabulary system. For example, using the field of anatomy, he offers 375 terms ranging from 15 letter words such as cerebrovascular and parasympathic down to
4 letter words such as ruga and uvea.
Given that anatomy is just one of the many possible fields of study, any effort in this direction might strike you as overwhelming. However, if you want to make this the basis of a family word play game that takes place on a fairly regular basis, then the results can be outstanding. In the current high tech world where images, rather than words, dominate, regular forays into amazing but relatively unfamiliar vocabulary can have a dramatic impact.
If you would like to learn more, go http://ednews.org/articles/36200/1/High-Tech-Workplace-Vocabulary-Empowerment-for-High-School-Freshmen--The-Case-for-Dictionary-Based-Electronic-Learning/Page1.html
